Monday, November 4, 2013

Meet our November 2013 Fan of the Month, Courtney Champion!

Happy November! :) I am so excited to introduce you to our November 2013 Fan of the Month, Courtney Champion! You may recognize her from our website as the photo she submitted back when we launched was chosen as one of our landing page images. <3

I grew up in Daphne,
Alabama and currently live in a suburb of Richmond, Virginia.

How many children do you have and what are their
ages?

One - Clara, almost 20
months.

How and when did you find twinkie tush?

My friend Marlyn
introduced me to twinkie tush after Clara was born. She sent us our first
twinkie tush, a turned, pre-stretch fleece Picnic. I remember being so excited
when Clara could finally fit into it. It looked huge on her, but I put it on as
soon as she reached 12 pounds.

I write a food blog
called Cook Like a Champion. I absolutely love cooking and baking, especially
when I need an escape from things that are bothering me. Blogging has connected
me to so many people I wouldn’t have met otherwise, and I get so much joy when
people comment and tell me that they made and loved a recipe I posted. Plus,
it’s fun (and honestly, sometimes cringe-worthy haha) to look back at the
photos I posted when I started my blog five years ago. I’ve grown so much as a
cook, photographer and blogger, and it’s nice to be able to see tangible proof
of that by looking back at my early posts. Food is my love language, and I’d
still be cooking and baking even without the blog. When I can’t find the words
to say, I give food. I love that I can make something that can provide comfort
or a smile. I mean, have you ever seen anyone feel sad around cupcakes or
cookies?

What makes you feel most inspired or
grounded? How
do you take care of yourself and your spirit?

I have a group of
friends (that I met through blogging) that I email with on a daily basis. Even
though we are all in different cities, it doesn’t feel that way. Whenever I
have a problem or am feeling down about something, I know they’ll be there to
help me. They continually inspire me, and I can’t imagine my life without them
in it. I’m also an advisor for a local chapter of my sorority, and I feel so
lucky to be able to help guide the women I advise. Plus, they adore Clara and
always get excited when I bring her to events. Since we don’t have family
nearby, it’s makes me happy to see a bunch of people doting on her. Our
sorority’s flower is the pink rose, and Clara is our little Rose Petal (hence
my love of pink rose diapers).

What is your favorite activity to do with Clara?

I love reading with
Clara. She will grab as many of her babies that she can hold and
enthusiastically back up into my lap. There’s something magical in helping her
discover new words or or places or things, and hope her love of reading
continues to grow as she does.

What is/was your favorite place to visit?

Sonoma, California. We
went there on our honeymoon and were completely smitten. Good food + good wine
= a dreamy vacation for us. Luckily for us, Virginia has a ton of wineries and
plenty of fantastic restaurants.

What is your favorite book? What about your favorite movie?

I love all of the Harry
Potter books. My husband has been reading them (along with the Narnia and Lord
of the Rings series) to Clara at bedtime since she was just a few months old.
He reads; I feed. It’s a good system. ;) I also love Pride and Prejudice. I
love the movie adaptations of those books, too, but my favorite movie of all
time is The American President.

What is something surprising about you, that
people might not guess upon meeting you?

My favorite TV show of
all time is The X Files. I was obsessed with it from about 8th grade until it
ended my junior year of high school.
People seem weirdly shocked when they find out that I like sci-fi type
shows. I’m kind of a nerd, and I’m totally okay with that.

What twinkie tush attribute and/or philosophy do
you most appreciate?

The generous and kind
spirit twinkie tush shows its customers. You never hesitate to donate your
talent to worthy causes, and I think that is simply amazing. I also love that,
even as your business has grown, you still keep in touch with your
customers/fans. You’ve created a wonderful community, and I’ve gained a
wonderful friend because of that. I met Nicole through the twinkie tush
Facebook group, and we quickly became friends, messaging each other frequently.
Her daughter is only one day older than Clara. We even all got to meet in
September, and it was so wonderful to hang out with her and her family and feel
like we’ve been friends forever.

What would you tell someone who has yet to try a
twinkie tush diaper?

Do it! Not only are you
buying a high quality product, but you are supporting a wonderful company that
sees its customers as people and not just a number.

Tell us your funniest cloth-diapering or
parenting story!

Explaining cloth
diapering to a bunch of college students was pretty amusing. When I had Clara
with me at a sorority event over the summer, a few of the girls were enthralled
with her diapers when they saw them. It was hilarious to hear them say things
like “Oh my gosh! Is that a real diaper?” and “Does that diaper have roses on
it?!” I like to think I’m using cute diapers to encourage the next generation
of cloth diaperers. ;)

Tell us about one of the most meaningful
parenting experiences you have had.

Being able to breastfeed
Clara as long as I have means more than I can say. I know a lot of people think
doing it past 12 months is odd, but I am so thankful that I’ve been able to
continue nursing Clara. She was born with thumb hypoplasia, and I remember being
terrified of what that might mean for her. But somehow, when she perfectly
latched on the first time she tried, I knew that I was giving her everything
she needed in that moment. It was an empowering feeling, and it made some of
that fear subside.

Courtney, thank you again for sharing about yourself and your beautiful little girl! We are so happy to have you as our November Fan of the Month!

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About Me

My name is Gretchen Gilpin and I am the creator, owner and chief operator of twinkie tush cloth diapers! My husband Mike and I work together to run twinkie tush, along with a growing team of employees! twinkie tush was named after our now almost 6 year old twins, M&D!